Pharmacotherapy Self-Assessment Program
®
REFERENCE VALUES FOR COMMON LABORATORY TESTS
1
Serum Chemistries
Reference Range
Alanine aminotransferase (ALT)
10–40 U/L
Albumin
3.5–5 g/dL (adults)
3.4–4.2 g/dL (young children)
Alkaline phosphatase (ALP)
Varies with age:
30–120 IU/L (adults)
150–420 IU/L (children)
Ammonia
15–45 mcg/dL
Amylase
27–131 U/L
Aspartate aminotransferase
(AST)
10–30 U/L
Bilirubin, direct
0.1–0.3 mg/dL
Bilirubin, total
0.3–1.2 mg/dL
Blood urea nitrogen (BUN)
8–23 mg/dL (adults)
Lower in children
Calcium, ionized
4.6–5.1 mg/dL
Calcium, total serum
8.2–10.2 mg/dL
Carbon dioxide (venous) (CO
2
)
22–28 mEq/L
Chloride (Cl)
96–106 mEq/L
C-reactive protein (CRP)
0.08–3.1 mg/L
Creatinine kinase (CK)
40–150 U/L
Creatinine, serum (SCr)
0.6–1.2 mg/dL (adults)
0.2–0.7 mg/dL (children)
Creatinine (clearance) (CrCl)
75–125 mL/minute/1.73 m
2
Ferritin
15–200 ng/mL
γ-Glutamyl transpeptidase
2–30 U/L
Glucose, serum
70–110 mg/dL
Hemoglobin A1C percent of
total hemoglobin
4%–7%
Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)
100–200 U/L
Lipase
31–186 U/L
Magnesium
1.3–2.1 mEq/L
Osmolality, serum
275–295 mOsm/kg
Phosphorus
2.3–4.7 mg/dL (adults)
3.7–5.6 mg/dL (children)
Potassium
3.5–5.0 mEq/L
Prealbumin
19.5–35.8 mg/dL
Sodium
136–142 mEq/L
Uric acid, serum
4–8 mg/dL
Hematology/Coagulation
Reference Range
Hematocrit (Hct)
42%–50% (men)
36%–45% (women)
Hemoglobin (Hgb)
14–18 g/dL (men)
12–16 g/dL (women)
International normalized ratio
(INR)
0.9–1.1
Mean corpuscular hemoglobin
(MCH)
26–34 pg/cell
Mean corpuscular hemoglobin
concentration (MCHC)
33–37 g/dL
Mean corpuscular volume
(MCV)
80–100 fL/cell
Partial thromboplastin time
(PTT)
25–40 seconds
Platelet count (Plt)
150,000–350,000 cells/mm
3
Prothrombin time (PT)
10–13 seconds
Red blood cell count (RBC)
4.5–5.9 × 10
6
cells/mm
3
(men)
4.1–5.1 × 10
6
cells/mm
3
(women)
Reticulocyte percent of red
blood cells
0.5%–1.5%
White blood cell count (WBC)
4.5–11.0 × 10
3
cells/mm
3
Serum Lipids
Reference Range
Cholesterol, total (TC),
desirable
< 200 mg/dL
High-density lipoprotein (HDL)
cholesterol, desirable
≥ 60 mg/dL
Low-density lipoprotein (LDL)
cholesterol
< 100 mg/dL
Triglycerides (TG)
< 150 mg/dL
Blood Gases
Arterial
Venous
pH
7.35–7.45
7.31–7.41
Partial pressure of carbon
dioxide (P
CO
2
)
35–45 mm Hg
40–52 mm Hg
Partial pressure of oxygen (P
O
2
)
80–100 mm Hg
30–50 mm Hg
Oxygen saturation (Sa
O
2
)
> 90%
60%–75%
Serum bicarbonate (HCO
3
)
22–26 mEq/L
21–28 mEq/L
Urinalysis
Leukocyte esterase, nitrite,
protein, blood, ketones,
bilirubin, glucose
Negative
pH
4.5–8.0
Specific gravity
1.010–1.025
1
Values given in this table are commonly accepted reference ranges compiled from several sources. Paent-specic goals may
dier depending on age, sex, clinical condion, and the laboratory methodology used to perform the assay.
Informaon from: AMA Manual of Style. Available at www.Amamanualofstyle.com/page/si-conversion-calculator. Last
accessed 11/21/2018); Lee M, ed. Basic Skills in Interpreng Laboratory Data, 6th ed. Bethesda, MD: American Society
of Health-System Pharmacists, 2017; and DiPiro JT, Talbert RL, Yee GC, et al., eds. Pharmacotherapy: A Pathophysiologic
Approach, 10th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2017.
